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1: Poland Set to Sign Copyright Treaty, Despite Protests

First off today, Poland has announced that it plans to go ahead with its schedule signing of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) despite protests and even denial of service attacks against many of its key government sites. The treaty, which primarily targets counterfeit goods but also deals with some copyright issues, is designed to harmonize criminal and civil enfrocement across signing countries. According to government representatives, the treaty does not require any changes in existing Polish law and, as such, there is no reason to delay signing past Thursday’s planned ceremony. Anonymous, who is behind many of the attacks, has threatened to release government documents if the treaty is signed.

2: ‘Agneepath’ in copyright tussle!

Next up today, in India, the upcoming release of the movie Agneepath may be moving forward without one of its most-anticipated songs. A lawsuit filed by Aditya Salankar claims that the song “Oh Saiyya” is a direct copy of a song he composed and is seeking to halt the use of the song in the film as well as additional damages. The movie, which is a remake of a popular Hindi film from 1990, has been widely anticipated in the country.

3: Supreme Court Decision on Copyright May Not Injure Major Opera Companies, Symphonies

Finally today, according to a report on a St. Louis-area opera company, the recent Supreme Court ruling in the case Golan v. Holder will not have a drastic impact on opera and symphony performances. The case found that Congress acted constitutionally when it passed the Uruguay Round Agreement Act and re-copyrighted a series of works previously in the public domain. The case was brought by a group of librarians, performers and others who depended on public domain works for their living. However, according to at least one opera house, the difference the ruling will cause will, most likely, add some costs but “not substantially” adding that they have never chosen which opera to perform based on whether royalties are owed or not.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Expendables Producers Drop Lawsuit Against 23K BitTorrent File-sharers

First off today, the U.S. Copryight Group, representing the producers behind the movie “The Expendables” have dropped their suit against 23,000 alleged Bittorrent file sharers. The movie comes after the Washington DC Federal Judge said the group would not be able to pursue infringers with that lawsuit if they are not in the court’s jurisdiction, theoretically eliminating all but 84 of the cases. However, the suit was dropped without prejudice leaving the U.S. Copyright Group open to refile.

2: Lakewood Church, Osteens Sued For $3M

Next up today, Houston-based Lakewood Church is being sued by two musicians, Richard Cupolo and John Emanuelle claiming that the church used a song created by the pair was used in commercials for the church after their license expired in February 2011. The church has said that the music, which was one minute of background music for the commercial, was licensed and that the musicians are “confused”.

3: Copyright Piracy Increasing in Asian Countries

Finally today, despite all the talk about Web-based piracy, printed book piracy is a growing problem in Asia where illegal copies of many bestsellers are printed in India and shipped throughout the continent. The illegal operations are controlled by highly organized gangs, often working alongside legitimate printing companies and are able to print and distribute between 75-80 western bestsellers a year.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 5 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: ISPs Fight Piracy: Meet the Six Strikes

First off today, in the United States, ISPs have agreed to forward copyright notices on to subscribers who are accused of copyright infringement and, after a series of five warnings, possibly take other action including requiring the customer to take a copyright training course before resuming access or having their download speeds reduced. The plan was brokered between the major ISPs in the country and a range of copyright holders, it does not include providing subscriber information to copyright holders and it does not mandate ISPs cut access to alleged infringers. THe plan negotiations were also spurred by the White House, which applauded the deal. ISPs involved include AT&T, Cablevision, Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Verizon.

2: Phonographic Performances Ltd Wins Music Copyright War

Next up today, in India, Phonographic Performances Ltd. (PPL), the organization responsible for collecting licensing fees on behalf of musicians when their songs are played commercially in public, won a series of three legal victories against the Event and Entertainment Management Association, The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India and Bangalore Fashion Week respectively. All three groups had gone to court arguing against the fees they were being asked to pay. In each case, the judge shot down their arguments and ruled in favor of PPL, holding up the organizations fees and practices. The rulings are expected to give PPL greater power to compel license fees from those who use music throughout India.

3: Exclusive: John Legend, Kanye West’s G.O.O.D Music Accused Of Stealing ‘Maxine’s Interlude’

Finally today, R&B artist John Legend and his label have been sued by songwriter Anthony Stokes, who accused Legend of stealing “Maxine’s Interlude”, a track off of his album “Once Again”. According to Stokes, he gave Legend a demo of a song he wrote, ““Where Are You Now,” only to have Legend use the majority of the song in “Maxine’s Interlude”. Stoked included images of Legend on the night he claims to have handed the disc to him and points out several similarities between the songs. Stokes registered his song with the U.S. Copyright Office in 2004.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Blaming Piracy, Music Industry Says It’s Lost a Third of Its Value Over Past 7 Years

First off today, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s (IFPI) released its annual report today and, as one might expect, it’s fairly grim. According to the report, the record industry has lost about 30% of its total value globally over the past 7 years and even the growth in digital music sales is slowing.The report places the blame for this on piracy and calls for governments to take stronger action against it, saying that some 1.2 million jobs in Europe may disappear by 2015 if nothing is done.

2: Record Labels Seek To Disqualify LimeWire’s Law Firm For Ethical Conflict

Next up today, though Limewire may have been shut down, the case against it continues as record industry attorneys attempt to get damages from the company. However, now the attorneys for the plaintiffs are attempting to get the opposing counsel disqualified for an alleged conflict of interest. According to the plaintiff’s attorneys, Cravath, Swaine & Moore (CSM), one of the core members of their team in the case, Jeffrey Korn, now works for Limewire’s counsel, Willkie Farr & Gallagher (WFG), and has a critical role in the case. This, according to CSM, creates a conflict of interest that should result in WFG from working on the case any farther. This could, potentially, slow down the case greatly as Limewire may have to obtain new counsel and bring them up to speed in the case.

3: Cheap Books or End of Indian Writing?

Finally today, publishers in India are worried about pending changes in the country’s copyright law that, they say, could flood the market with cheap books. The current law requires publishers to get specific territorial rights to distribute books in India but changes to the law, largely aimed at helping Bollywood handle licensing of music and other content, would allow books to be sold in the country that were printed anywhere. According to publishers, this could jeopardize the Indian publishing system as a flood of books unable to be sold in other markets are sold cheap within the country. Publishers have vowed to lobby against the law or for changes to it to protect them.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Justin Bieber Swears Off YouTube For Facebook, Unwittingly Steps In Copyright Minefield

First off today, pop musician Justin Bieber swore off YouTube after he attempted to upload his new music video for the song “Pray” only to find his upload blocked at the request of his label UMG. This prompted Bieber to then upload the video to his Facebook page, which has different limitations on uploads, and tweet his frustrations, prompting a response from YouTube saying it was between him and his label. The song, which appeared officially on the VEVO channel, remains blocked in Bibers account though the two seem to have patched things up with Bieber saying that “@vevo and @youtube got me right now”, whatever that means.

2: Judge Issues Rulings in Estate’s Superhero Battle

Next up today, the judge in the ongoing dispute between Jack Kirby’s estate and Marvel has issued a ruling and the news is mixed for the company. Kirby’s estate, which filed some 45 copyright terminations for Kirby’s work at Marvel, which could impact the X-Men, Ironman and much more, avoided having its counterclaims thrown out, meaning the judge may still rule the terminations to be valid, but did lose its chance to force Marvel to account for how much money is at stake as the judge felt it was premature. The judge also ruled that Disney, which purchased Marvel shortly after the complaints were filed, will be a party to the lawsuit as they are in a position to exploit Marvel’s intellectual property.

3: China Cracks Down On Software Piracy

Finally today, in an attempt to crack down on software piracy, China has said that it will be auditing all computers in local and central governments to ensure that they are only using genuine software. This comes as the Business Software Alliance has estimated a growth in global piracy and pointed the finger at China, as well as Brazil and India, for much of the jump.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Big Media Wants More Piracy Busting from Google

First off today, heads from both the IFPI and the RIAA recently approached Google to see what the search engine could do to help them track down pirates more efficiently. Google, according to a response, was less-than-helpful saying that they only help they could offer would be an API solution that would charge 5 dollars for every 1,000 queries, an amount that the organizations said would cost millions per year. Google has said it complies with copyright law and does not charge for content removals, but has to charge the amount above for the API to recoup costs.

2: American P2P Law Firms Now Threatening… Each Other

Next up today the Media Copyright Group and the U.S. Copyright Group are in something of a trademark spat. The two firms specialize in anti-piracy work, namely filing massive lawsuits against suspected file sharers to procure settlements, making them direct competitors. Observers had previously noticed that MGC’s filings used whole passages from the USCG’s previous filings but it seems to be trademark that has put the two companies at odds. The USCG had sent a letter to the MCG demanding that they change their name and pay damages, in response, the MCG has now filed a preemptive lawsuit seeking a declaratory judgement that the name is legal and to try to revoke USCG’s trademark application. USCG has not yet responded to the lawsuit.

3: Knock Out makers ordered to share screenplay with Fox

Finally today, the makers of the Bollywood film Knock Out have been ordered to turn over their screenplay to Fox, which accuses them of plagiarizing the work from the film Phone Booth. Both films feature a protagonist being held hostage in a phone booth and ordered to reveal dark secrets. Knock Out is scheduled to be released on Oct. 15th and there appears to be no plans to halt the release at this time.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

1: Canada Introduces Legislation to Amend Copyright Laws

First off today, the Conservative Party in Canada has introduced a piece of copyright legislation, a follow up to its previous, more contentious, bill that was halted due to an election. This bill would provide protections to digital locks, similar to the DMCA’s anti-circumvention protections here in the U.S., but would also allow non-commercial format shifting to transfer music and other works from one format to another for personal use. The anti-circumvention rules also have a fair dealing exemption, which is unlike the U.S. version, and the bill also codifies into law the practice of ISPs simply forwarding on notices of infringement to users and removes them completely from liability for infringement.

2: India vows to sabotage ACTA

India has vowed to band together with similar-minded countries and oppose the controversial ACTA treaty. The move is interesting because India, nor the other nations mentioned (Brazil, China, etc.) are not parties to the treaty at this time though many believe that, once ratified, they might be pressured to sign on later. India has vowed to negotiate with parties to the treaty in an attempt to derail the process but it doesn’t object to the controversial Internet portions of the treaty and, instead, is focused more on the protections granted pharmaceuticals in the proposed agreement.

3: Rock Band Claims Paul Violated Music Copyright

Finally, in the latest dispute between a band and a politician, the Canadian rock group Rush has sent a letter to the campaign of Kentucky Republican Senate hopeful Rand Paul for using two of their songs without permission, one at a rally and one as the background for a fundraising video. The campaign has called the matter a “non-issue”.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

1: Why Hollywood Should Be Nervous About Court Pick

First off today, the entertainment industry may be a bit nervous about President Obama’s recent nominee for the Supreme Court, Elena Kagan. Though her bench record on most issues is sparse, her views on copyright are well-known. As Dean at the Harvard Law school for much of this decade, Kegan oversaw the expansion of the Berkman Center, which is not only famously liberal on fair use issues but is also home to Charles Nesson, who famously defended Joel Tenenbaum in his case against the RIAA. She also weighed in on the Cablevision case as the Solicitor General, where she sided with the cable company’s remote DVR system over the objection of the movie studios.

2: Disc or Download? You Decide

Next up today, the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem (DECE) is working on a set of draft standards to help make digital download and digital streaming of media content easier and more secure for users. The idea is to create a standard that allows users to stream or view media content wherever they may be on any device. The consortium, which was founded by a group of tech and media companies, also hopes to evolve and push the Blu-Ray standard, calling it the best way to view content available right now.

3: Court Orders Stay On the Release of Kites

Finally today, another major release in India is facing copyright trouble right before its release. The movie Kites, scheduled to open on March 21, has had a stay filed against it until after the parties can meet in court on the 24th. At issue is the rights clearance on several clips used in the film, which the owner says they were never properly paid for. The studio behind the film, however, has announced that they are going ahead with the planned release.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

1: New Copyright Law in Chile

First off today, Chile has announced the largest reforms to its copyright law since it was revised in 1970. The new revisions include three changes, the first expands fair use and other copyright exemptions, the second element expands the penalties for copyright infringement, up to $140,000 US fine for repeat infringers, and the third carves our safe harbors for ISPs though the report is vague on how ISPs are able to obtain such safe harbors. More on this likely to come.

2: Canada still bad boy of piracy: IFPI

Next up today, in another part of the IFPI report we covered yesterday, where it was highlighted that the music industry grew in many markets, the IFPI repeated its cries against Canada calling it “a major source of the world’s piracy problem” pointing out that the country has not signed or enacted various treaties that are decades old and, according the IFPI, the country hosts a “disproportionate” amount of piracy sites.

3: Copyright drama over Housefull

Finally today, in India, the long-awaited release of the movie “Housefall” may be in some trouble as a court order questioning the film’s use of the song “Apni Toh Jaise Taise”, performed by the duo Kalyanji-Anandji, and Puneet Mehra, claiming that the song was not properly licensed. The order came mere days before the movie was due to be released (today) and the artists behind the song are now seeking a restraining order barring the use of the song in the film.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Wednesday evening at 6 PM ET for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Friday right here on Plagiarism Today.

1: Jury Clears Members of Notorious Music Piracy Group

First off today two members of the Scene release group “Rabid Neurosis” (RNS) were acquitted in a Texas courtroom yesterday. The two members were on trial for criminal copyright infringement and two other members who plead guilty testified against them. The group reportedly had contacts at various manufacturing plants and leaked albums before they were released on the Web, earning the attention of a year-long FBI investigation. No details yet on the reasoning behind the verdict or if the other members have been sentenced.

2: Bollywood and Hollywood unite to Fight Piracy

Next up today, movie studios in Hollywood and Bollywood are teaming up to combat DVD piracy in India. India is known as one of the top nations for DVD piracy and the issue has been an ongoing one for its native Bollywood studios as well as those from the U.S. The coalition hopes to petition the government for stronger enforcement of piracy laws and, including making piracy a non-bailable offence within the country.

3: Court: Widow Owns ‘King of the Road’ Copyright

Finally today, The widow of country music star Roger Miller has won a court battle and gained the rights to many of his greatest hits, including “King of the Road’. The judge also awarded her some $900,000 in royalties that she had not received. Miller, who died in 1992, died before the copyright renewal period on his songs recorded in 1964 and beyond, meaning that those rights transfer back to his estate. Sony, his label, still holds the renewal copyright in Miller’s songs from 1963 and earlier.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.

Want the Full Story?

Tune in every Saturday morning for the live recording of the Copyright 2.0 Show or wait and get the edited version Monday morning right here on Plagiarism Today.